Work programme

Space is important for Europe. It is both a strategic asset and enormous opportunity for our society and economy. Space technologies, infrastructure, services and data provide the EU with the tools needed to address societal challenges and big global concerns, such as climate change, migration, mobility, energy security and many others. The security and well-being of our citizens increasingly depend on information and services provided from space.

Space has a growing importance for the European economy. Space provides data and connectivity for the digital economy. It boosts innovation and creates new sources of jobs and growth, particularly through the development of value-added (downstream) products and services, which opens new market opportunities for European companies, including SMEs and start-ups, and contributes to the competitiveness of our economy. Space can help increase the resilience of key sectors of the economy, such as transport networks, energy grids, or financial and banking services. The importance of space for the functioning of European society is expected to grow in the future as we move towards a more interconnected society and digital data-driven economy which will increase the demand for space-based services.

To bring the benefits of space to the European citizens and unleash the potential of space as a vector for growth, competitiveness and jobs creation in the wider European economy it is necessary to stimulate the integration of space into European society and economy, foster a globally competitive European space sector and ensure European autonomy in accessing and using space in a safe and secure environment.

Themes of the programme

The work programme has been structured to address these challenges:

Supporting the market uptake and evolution of the Copernicus and EGNSS (Galileo/EGNOS);